If you are trying to identify an aircraft wire or cable, you may want to take advantage of the lessons Lectromec has learned in the past three decades. Because we are in the business of evaluating electrical systems, we frequently open up boxes where we must determine origin and manufacturer of wire and cable. This video gives you the guidelines of where to start the process.
We start at the basics – an aircraft wire or cable sitting on a shelf. The spool labels will usually identify the wire or cable specifications, lot number, date of manufacture, and producer. This can also be of assistance for traceability. If the spool label is missing, you may be able to find a wire specification on the wire or cable itself.
It gets more difficult with a wire or cable pulled from an aircraft. During the video, we show how to make a more thorough inspection of a wire or cable that has been installed on a plane. At the 1:29 point there is an excellent visualization of aircraft wire concepts like outer jacket, outer shield, inner jacket, inner shield, and twisted pair.
If you would like to learn more about aircraft wire and cable identification, you may want read one these blogs Lectromec has previously written:
- Understanding Aircraft Wire Differentiation to improve Electrical Wire Interconnect Systems;
- How to Identify an Aircraft Wire to Understand Aircraft Wire Degradation.
If you would like additional help identifying wires, Lectromec provides both testing and consultation services. You can see an exhaustive list of tests to help you with this process on our Wire and Cable Certification Testing page.
This article was written by the Lectromec technical team. Aircraft wiring is our passion and we strive to make a contribution to the field by sharing our expertise through blogs, podcasts, and videos. We hope you find this information helpful. We also encourage you to submit comments and spur discussions.